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Thanks to Paul for a poignant tribute Prize this week, definitely one for Guardian crossword aficionados. I did not know the dedicatee had passed, very sad news. To avoid spoilers, only brief comments...

I saw the theme rather quickly, but (perhaps ironically) found the puzzle on the difficult side.

FOI 13, LOI 14 which required research.

COD the brilliant 18, edging out 22. Also enjoyed 15, 16, 20 and 7.

There's another clue worthy of COD consideration that must be omitted due to potential spoiler. Maybe it'll come up later.

I'm filling a lot in with absolutely zero clue as to their parsing. Hopefully the mists will clear when I find out what the theme is.

plutocrat, if you're really curious about the theme / dedicatee, peek at [SPOILER ALERT]: https://tinyurl.com/5n8k6c4t

It's really a clever puzzle. Many of the details assume a reasonable degree of familiarity with the dedicatee.

Sad. Thanks Paul for bringing this to our attention. I can't really give anyone a hint as to how I got the theme without a spoiler really. I got it before I solved 23d.

Mondays were usually a nice gentle start to the week. RIP

Well I finished, but I still am not fond of Paul as a setter (though some of the clues were very funny today!)
Some fairly obscure GK references in 21, 7, and 15.
A few things I need explaining:
How does "performer" fit in 1a?
What do I need to add to 6d?
Parsing of 8d?

6d. If you put able at the end you get rocky (I had the wrong second letter for a while)
8d. I think is three letters fired inside five letters pay
I don’t really understand 1a either, though ‘magic performer’ is another reference to the theme

Thanks jono. Yes, I see 6d now. I wouldn't use "pay" as a synonym for the 5 letters in 8d, but they are related, I suppose.

This is sad news, I enjoyed his “easy” Monday offerings.
1a is a bit weak, but it fits the theme nicely.

I’m pretty sure I have the cryptic clues concerning the author’s works, but can’t locate a listing of them (my go-to website has entries for others of his ilk, but he’s absent).
Could 1a be related to Game of Thrones, a subject on which I am woefully ignorant?